Moving day and medical tests

Yesterday we received Noah’s passport.  The little picture is so cute.  We were the only ones whose child’s passport picture was taken before we were there so we didn’t get to see it.  He is so cute!  Sorry, I must gush!

 

We went to lunch at the Holiday Inn Express Restaurant for lunch.  We ate there for our first lunch in Zhengzhou and that was our last.  Then we went back to the hotel to pack and get ready to leave for Guangzhou.  It is bittersweet to leave your child’s province and know that they may or may not ever be back.  One the other hand we were ready to get on with the rest of the trip so we can go home.  We were really going stir crazy there.  I wish we would have had the option to do some touring there.  We had our luggage outside the rooms at 2:30 and loaded up on the bus at 3.  We drove to the airport and said goodbye to our sweet guide, Vivian.  Lila really loved her.  She even sat with her on the ride to the airport.

 

The flight to Guangzhou was very eventful but not because of the 2 year old.  It was the 5 year old that made a scene.  On take-off she dropped my ipod on the floor and it slide away from us.  We searched and searched but could NOT find it.  Lila and I were both very upset.  I thought for sure that it was long gone given the incident with the stacking cups a few days before.  We asked the ladies behind us to look (one of them spoke some English) but they didn’t see it either.  Then all of a sudden Lila decided she had to go potty NOW.  Of course, we couldn’t get up because we were still taking off.  Between that and the ipod she had a complete meltdown.  Just then Noah’s sippy cup exploded in my lap.  I had just filled it with water.  Luckily it was just water.  I was soaked.  We got special permission to take Lila potty and then we were able to settle in.  Noah stayed awake the whole time and played happily.  Lila slept and slept and slept.  I tried to wake her up for dinner but she was completely incoherent.  After we landed we asked a family from our group that was a couple of rows back from us to look for my ipod and lo and behold they found it!!!!!  I was so relieved.  That thing was a lifesaver on our flight from the US.  Lila can watch a movie and some tv shows on it and play games.

 

Finally we landed in Guangzhou and met our guide, Jason.  He is awesome!  He is so organized and gives us detailed agendas for each day.  The only problem was that we had to walk and walk and walk to get to the bus.  Thankfully, we were able to walk a lot of that inside.  It was 9:00 at night and 91 degrees!  It was like getting slapped in the face with a hot wet towel.  I think it was during that walk that I got about 8 of my dozen bug bites.  Itchy itchy! 

 

We are at a very nice hotel but it is no White Swan.  It’s actually probably nicer but I still miss the White Swan and the view of the Pearl River and neon boats we had.  Our view is city city city here.  It’s definitely small than our last hotel room but the air conditioning makes up for that!  One odd thing is that the wall between the room and the shower and bathroom is glass so you can see everything going on in there from the room.  There is a curtain to close but it’s on the room side not the bath side which would be fine if we didn’t have to inquisitive children.

 

 

We were exhausted by the time we got to the hotel.  I was so hot I just wanted a shower.  Ugh, that started some major screaming from Noah.  He cried and screamed Mama the whole time I was in the shower.  After I got done we started getting ready for bed.  We made Noah sleep in the crib.  That was a very loud and painful hour and a half for every one until he finally fell asleep.  He slept through the night though!  That was wonderful because bed time has been getting increasingly difficult every night and the night before neither he nor I slept at all.

 

We met at 9:30 this morning to go to the medical exam (its not on Shamian Island anymore).  First, as soon as we got out of the bus he threw up on us both.  Fun, we got to be wet and smelly for the rest of the morning.  (We were out of his car sick medicine) Next, he got his visa picture taken.  We were expecting that to be rough because he had to sit by himself but he did great!  After that were 3 stations to go to: the ENT, general health and weight and measurements.  He did fine being poked and prodded when they looked in his ears and used the tongue depresser on him.  He screamed and arched his back when they weighed and measured him and was very unhappy when they listened to his heart and lungs.  Because Noah is 2 now, he was the only one in our group that had to do the next step, the dreaded TB test.  He just watched while they stuck him and never uttered a sound!  Funny kid!

 

Noah is 22 pounds and 32 inches tall with 47 head circumference and the sweetest smile ever.

 

After the medical exam we came back to the hotel and had the rest of our day free.  Daddy got to play with Noah and even got to walk up and down the hall with him without Mommy in sight!  Greg even got to hold him for a few minutes!  We are making huge progress today with Baba!  Greg is so happy he was a little choked up when Noah let him hold him.  Mommy even got a much needed nap!  I’m sure I’ll need it tonight for the crib battle.

 

Tonight we walked around the hotel and looked at the shops and got some sandwiches from Starbucks for dinner.  Most of our group is very excited that there is a Starbucks in the hotel.  Neither Greg nor I are coffee drinkers so it’s no biggie for us.  There are a lot of very upscale stores in the hotel.  There were a few in our last hotel too, like Tommy Hilfiger!  Greg is the most excited about the McDonald’s across the street.  In fact, he went and got lunch there today.  Tastes just like home.  I did skip the quarter pounder though.  On our last trip to China I learned that they put a really spicy cucumber sauce on it!

 

Tomorrow’s agenda is Six Banyan Temple, Old Chen House, and the Guangdong Art & Craft shopping center. Hopefully tomorrow I can get the souvenir’s I’m looking for.  Things like chops and brush paintings that I got for Lila last time I want to get for Noah.  Then we come back to the hotel and receive Noah’s notary certificate and get his passport.  We should get our laundry back (hopefully MUCH cheaper than the last city).  Lastly, we are walking as a group to Macao Street Restaurant where they serve Cantonese-Portuguese cuisine.  I’m not sure how the two go together but I guess we’ll find out!